Apparatus for raising sunken objects.



A. VON REICHELT. APPARATUS FOR RAISING SUNKEN OBJECTS.

APPLIOATIQN FILED APR. 30, 1914.

1,120,743. Patented Dec. 15,1914.

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"HES NORRIS PETERS 130.. PHOTO-LITHCL, WA5H|NU10N4 u r A. VON REIGHELT.

APPARATUS FOR RAISING SUNKEN OBJECTS.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 30, 1914.

Patented Dec. 15, 19M

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THE NORRIS PETERS CD.v PHOTO-LITHQ. WASHINGTON. D. C.

Patented Dec. 15, 1914.

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S PETERS CO.. FHO'IU-LITIJO WASHINGTON. D. C

UNITED STATES r T n'r OFFICE.

ADOLF voN REIGHELT, or PIIIRKERSDOBF, AUSTRIA-HUNGARY, ASSIGNOR fro THE FIRM F I-IIRSCI-I a rt'ms'r, or VIENN AUSTRIA-HUNGARY.

APPARATUS ron R ISIN SUNVKENF OBJECTS.

To all whom it may concern:

subject of the Emperor of Austria-Hungary,

residing at Purkersdorf, in theEmpire of Austria-Hungary, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Apparatus for Raising Sunken Objects, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to apparatus for raising sunken objects and more particularly to that kind which comprises a buoy provided with a grab device and in which the buoyancy is obtained by means of compressed air or gas. 7

In accordance with my invention the grab gear suspended from the buoy is placed communication with the discharge valve of the pressure medium reservoir by means of a flexible, stretched member which-is slack when the grab arms make contact and permits of the opening of the discharge valve, .while at the same time the closing of the contracting v grab arms is efi'ected by the automatic release ofhooks previously holding these arms open.

'By means of links auxiliary buoys are connected with the main buoy and are adapted to be released from their inoperative deep position by a traction member adapted to be operated from the surface of the water. The auxiliary buoys can be charged with the pressure medium by s1- multaneous opening of cocks, so that if the grab arms should become buried in the ground additional buoyancy can be brought to bear upon them while they are deprlved of a support which acts upon them in their closed position and at the same time owing to the sudden relief the main buoy is caused to ascend and the grab arms are caused t separate. I I

The invention is illustrated byway of example .in the accompanying drawing, in which Figure 1 shows the apparatus in section:

the lefthalf of the figure represents one of the grab arms (shown broken off) in its .closed position while the right half shows the other arm in its open position. Fig.2 is a plan of the apparatus. Fig. 3 is. a. ver

tical axial section of the discharge valve of s s the air reservoir. Fig. 4c is a similar view showing the regulat ng valve forthe a1r reservolr. Flg. 5 represents an alr-heating furnace in vertical axial section. I Fig. 6

- pipe 9 from the air reservoir 4.

Specification of Letters Patent. Patented Dec; 15, Application filed April 30, 1914. Serial No. 835,381. v

are strengthened by cast collars '2land ,3, v 1

respectively, the latter, acting also as. sup

ports for a concentrically 'arranged'air reservoir 4. By means of a chargingvalve 5 the air reservoir is charged n a well known Uponthe upper collar 3, a hood 7 provided with an air cock 6 is fitted in an airtight manner. In order to prevent the buoy from rotating while it is being sunk,l01igitudii1al fins8 are providediuponthe body 1 of the buoy; these fins insure the grab arms making contact in a given position. Upon the air reservoir 4 in addition to thecliarging valve 5 a discharge valve 9, a regulating valve'lO and an air heating furnace 11 are arranged. V

The 'discharge valve 9 (Fig. 3) can be caused to open inwardly by the pressure of a spring 12 when the tension of a cable 16 which preponderates over the action of the spring, ceases; this cable is fixed with one end to the longer arm of a bell-crank lever 14- acting as a pawl and pivoted to a lugof the valve casingl3 and with its other end to the supports 15 of a grab gear (Fig. 1).

through a The compressed air can then flow Fig. 3 shows that when the cable 16 again manner with high tension coinpressed air.

becomes taut the valve is not closed thereby; 7 this closing can only be effected by hand by I I meansofa pawl 17 whichbears against the shorter arm of the bell crank lever Hand is adapted to compress the spring12; the valve is then again pressed against its seat by means of a spring 12'.

.The regulating valve 10 atedby means of a float 18 ig. 1) providedi in the interior. of 'the i'buoy l and. mounted on the upwardly extending arm of a double lever 19; this lever'is pivoted to a supporting arm 20 which is fixed to a tube Fi .4) is sew- 21 centrally arrangedon the upper deck of i the buoy. This tube. serves to insure the am valve stem and the guide cylinders rise An air discharge valve 28 is mounted 0 volume ofair is always retained in the 131103 To the valve hood 22 (Fig. 4c) a one-armed lever 23 is pivoted, its end being connected by means of a cable 2 1 with the horizontal.

armof the double lever 19 carrying the float. A nose on the lever 23 bears against the stem of the valve; if the float rises in'the buoy, by means of the cable 24 and of the lever 23, the valve stem is depressed and the valve being opened thereby the compressed air can escape from the air reservoir 4, through buoy descends, the cable 24 slackens and the valve is again closed by the gas pressure and the action of springs 25 and 26. The compressed air escaping through the pipes 9 and 10 of the discharge and regulating valves is conducted to the air heating furnace '11 (Fig. This furnace is of known construction and serves to heat the air by means of benzin flames from a plurality of heating lamps 27 arranged in a circle provided'for the purpose of preventing the formation oficein the buoy.

the upper end of the buoy 1 (Figs. 6 and 7),

. and by the buoyancy of a float 29 mounted on. thelower-end of the valve stem 30 (Fig.

1) this'valve can be closed when the water level in the buoy has reached a given height.

on the upperend of the valve stem, is a guide cylinder 32 provided in its circumference with an annular groove 31; this cylinder. is "guided in the spring bush 33. The

latter is supported by a spring 34 and comprises two sector-shaped recesses-"35 (Fig.

7),"through which the air is able to escape from the interior of the buoy when the valve is open. As shown in the lower half of Fig.

7 when the valve is open, two pawl levers 37 mounted on pivots 36 are pressed by springs 38'against the guide cylinder 32 above the groove 31; at the same time the ends of the pawl levers engage an annular groove 39 in the'valve casing a0 and thereby prevent'the spring bush 33 which is subjected to the action of the spring 31 from rising. Now if underthe influence of the float 29, the pawl levers descend as shown in the upper half of Fig." 'i, under the influence of the springs 38 and engage the annular groove in the guide cylinder the support for the spring bush against the casing ceasing at the same time and the bush now being pressed upward by the spring 3& One can reopen the valve only by hand by'simultaneously separating and depressing hand claws arranged in bores 41 to' which the. springs 38 are also fixed; by thismeans the pawl levers are caused to assume the position indicatedabove.

The longitudinal fins 8 (Figs. 1 and 2) carry at their lower edge pivots 42 and at their upper edge pivots 43 of which the former serve for the suspension of the grab demountedin' a trough 50 by means of bolts the tube 10". NVhen th water level in the 49. On their inner ends, the grab arms carry rollers 52 rotatable about pins 51. Upon the bolts 46, hooks 53 are rotatably mounted,

their jaws embracing the rollers 52'against which they are pressed by 'ineans of tension springs 54:.

Thepins 12, 43 mounted in the two pairs at the bottornthey are open. They commu- Q nicate through pipes 'with the interior of the main buoy 1. The pipes 60 are rotatably mounted in stufling' boxes 61 on the auxiliary buoys and open into cock casings 62 on the body of the main buoy 1. On the lower pivot pi11s 56 of each auxiliary buoy a cable 63 is fixed; these cables pass over guide rollers and are attached to the upper arm of the corresponding book 53. Y The plug of the cock 62 can be rotated by means of a lever 65 which is pivotally' connected with a bell crank lever 67 by'means of a link 66; by means of claw 68, this lever 67 embraces a connecting pin 69 of the upper pair of links "When the hood 7 is removed and theair discharge valve 28 closed the air reservoir 4; of the buoy which is maintained above water is filled by means of a compressor with high pressure airby means of the charging valve 5;the discharge valve 9 and regulating valve 10am closed. The burners of the air heating furnace 11 are lighted; the hood 7 is screwed -onto form an airtight joint and the valve 28 is opened by hand. Owing to the discharge of the air, the buoyancy is lost and the" buoy descends while thewater level in the buoy rises until the float 29 closes and locks the valve 28. The lower the buoy sinks, the more the air contained therein is compressed so that owing to the constantly amount as otherwise onstriking against the ground, the apparatusmight be damaged.

Increase in the velocity of descent beyond a *sc'end for some time under the-,influenceof inertia. By this meansthe hooks l'? are rethat of the buoy alone.

given limit is prevented by the regulating valve 10 actuated by the float 18 and which allows the air to flow out of the reservoir 4:, the float maintains the water level in the buoy at the same height as it opens cr closes the valve when the Water level in the buoy tends to'rise or fall.

Whenv the buoy enters the Water the grab arms are suspended with the hooks 47 on .the pivots l5 of thegrabxgear andare supported in their positionby the upper jaws of the hooks 53.

On encountering the ground, in the first place the grab arms 18 and the trough 50 come to rest while the grab gear 15 and the buoy continue to deversed (see left hand halfof Fig. 1), while the engagement of the rollers '52 in::the mouths of the hooks is insured by the spring 54. At the same time the cable 16 is slackened, the spring 1-2Yopens the discharge valve 9 of the .air reservoir 4 and air flows through the air heating furnace 11 into the buoy and expels the water contained therein through the supporting collar.

As the quantity of air constantly maintained in the buoy during its descent is calculated in such a manner that although its buoyancy is smaller than the total weight of the buoy plus thegrab it is'greater than lVhile therefore after reaching the bottom, the'buoy continues to descend somewhauit immediately afterward rises again, whereby the suspension chains 44: are stretched. The grab arms are supported by their rollers 52 onthe "lower jaws of the hooks53 which j aws must be given such a curvature thatjthe rollers aresecurely held in positlon. i In order to avoid losing the entire appa- "mus in case it should become fast in the ground, prior to the sinking of the lifting buoy, the air is discharged from the auxiliary buoys 58 by opening the cocks 59 whereupon the cooks are again closed. By

this means the auxiliary buoys can be locked in their deep position, that is to say, the cocks 62 remainclosed. If the grabs of the buoy have become fast in the ground by exerting a pull on the cable 70, the locking means of the auxiliary buoys is released and the cocks 62- are opened,so that the air contained in e the body of the main buoy after having already expelled the water from thelatter, flows into the auxiliary buoys. The buoyancy thus produced: causes the auxiliary buoys to rise, the lower link pin assumes the position 567 so that the cables 63 are drawn over the guide rollers 64; and the hooks 53 are opened releasing the rollers 52 andthe grab arms 48. The buoy ascends owing to the sudden relief and by means ofthe chains 71 which have hitherto hung down slack raises the grab arms, whereby their claws 72 are released and the main buoy is now able to rise to the surface of the water. The

cable can be rendered taut by meansof a small Windlass mounted in a float-buoy anchored to the. cable 73. Iclaim i 1. Apparatus for raising sunkenobjects. comprising a buoy, a closed reservoir therein, adapted to be charged with a pressure medium, a grab gear loosely suspendedqfrom.

said buoy, a discharge valve on said reservo r normally closed, a member controlling SttlCl discharge valve and a normally taut flexible connection between said controlling member and said grab gear, adapted to permit the opening of the discharge valve when relaxed. I s

2. Apparatus for raising sunken objects comprising a buoy, a closed reservoir therein, adapted to be charged with a pressure medium, a grab gear loosely suspended from W saidfbuoy, a discharge valve on said reservoir normally closed, a spring tending to open sald discharge valve,a' pawl co-a'cting jwith said spring, apawllever adapted to lock said pawl in -position,"and a normally taut flexible connection between said pawl lever and said grabgear adaptedto release said pawl-lever when relaxed, thereby per mitting the said spring to open thesaidi discharge valve.

Apparatus for raising sunken objects 3 comprising a buoy, a closed reservoir there- 111' adapted to be charged with a pressure medium,'a grab gear loosely suspended from s said buoy, a regulating valve on said reserin adapted to be charged with a pressure Vi medium, a grab gear loosely suspended from sald buoy, a' regulating'valve on said reser-' voir normally, closed, a lever controlllng said regulating valve, a float in said buoy, a

pivoted bent lever carrying said float, a-flex ible connection between said bent lever and said valve controlling lever to cause the opening of'said regulating valve as the said float rises, and means for automatically closing said regulating valve upon the sinking of said float, and a discharge valve on said reservoir controlled by the position of [said grab gear.

5. Apparatus. for raising sunken objects comprising a buoy, a closed reservoir therein adapted to be charged with a pressure medium, a grab gear loosely suspended from vsaid buoy, a regulating valve on said reservoir normally closed, a lever controlling said regulating valve, a float in said buoy, a pivoted bent lever carrying said float, a flexible connection between said bent lever, and said valve controlling lever to cause the opening of said ,regulatingvalve as the said float rises, means for automatically closing said regulating valve upon the sinking of said float, a discharge valve on said reservoir controlled by the position of said grab gear, an air heating furnace mounted on said reservoir and connections between said furnaceand said two valves causing the air to pass through said furnace. a i

6. Apparatus for raising sunken objects comprising a buoy, a closed reservoir, therein adapted to be charged with a pressure medium, a grab gear loosely suspended from said buoy, a regulating valve on said reserregulating valve, a float in said buoy, a pivoted bent lever carrying said float, a flexible 1 connection between said bent leverand said valve controllinglever to cause the opening of said regulating valve as the said float rises, means for automatically closing said regulating valve upon the sinking of said float, and a short tube concentrically surrounding said reservoir down to a certain depth below the level of the water insaid buoy to prevent the. entire escape of air.

7.' Apparatus for raising sunken objects comprising a buoy, aclosed reservoir therein adapted to be charged with a pressure medium, a grab gear loosely suspended from said buoy, a discharge valve on said reservoir, a flexible connection between said discharge valve and said grab gear, a regulating valve on said reservoir, a float in said buoy and connections between said float and said regulating valve, a discharge valve on said buoy, means for opening the last mentioned discharge valve, and a float in said buoy connected with the valve stem of said last mentioned discharge valve and adapted to close the same upon a predetermined rise of said float.

8'. Apparatus for raising sunken objects comprising a buoy, a closed reservoir therein adapted to be charged with a pressure medium, a grab gear loosely suspended from said buoy, a discharge valve on said reservoir, a flexible connection between said discharge valve and said grab gear, a regulating valve on said reservoir, a float insaid buoy and connections between said float and said regulating valve, a discharge valve on said buoy, means for opening the last mentioned discharge valve, a float in said buoy connected with the valve stem of said last mentioned discharge valve and adapted to provided with jaws,"grab arms held by said vjaws, hooks pivoted to said grab arms near said aws and adapted to engage plns on said support to hold said'grab arms extended and adapted to-be released upon a downward movement of said supportv relative to said grab arms, thereby allowing the latter to closeupon each other, and a discharge valve von said reservoir controlled by 7 said support. vo1r normally closed, a lever controlling said '10. Apparatus for raising sunken objects comprising a buoy, a closed reservoir therein adapted to be charged with a'pressure medium, a support loosely suspended from said buoy, hooks pivoted to; said support and provided with jaws, grab arms held by said jaws, hooks pivoted to said grab arms near said jaws and adapted to engage'pins on said support to hold said grab arms extended and adapted tobe releasedv upon a downward movement of said support relative to said grab arms, thereby allowing the latter to close upon, each other, a discharge valve on saidreservoir controlled by said support, and chains attached to said grab arms for limiting their downward movement. i

11. Apparatus for raising sunken objects comprisinga main buoy, aclosed reservoir therein adapted to be charged with a pressure medium, a support loosely suspended from said main buoy, hooks pivoted to said support, grab arms supported from said hooks, means for normally holding said grab arms in an extended position and adapted to release said arms upon a downward movement of said support relative to saidarms, a dischargevalve onsaid reservoir controlled by said support, links pivoted to said main buoy, auxiliary buoys carried by said links and normally assuming a lowered position, a normally closed means of communication between said auxiliary buoys and said main buoy, and means for opening said means of communication toallow the said auxiliary buoys to become charged with the pressure medium.

12. Apparatus for raising sunken objects comprising a main buoy, a closed reservoir therein adaptedto be charged with a pres sure medium, a support loosely suspended from said main buoy, hooks pivoted to said support and provided with jaws, grab arms held in said jaws, means for normallyholding said' grab arms in an extended position and adapted to release said arms upon a downward movement of said support relative to said arms, a discharge valve on said reservoir controlled by said support, links pivoted to said main buoy, auxiliary buoys carried by said links, normally held in a lowered position, pipes connecting said auxiliary buoys and said main buoy, cocks in said pipes, an actuating -mechanism normally holding said cocks closed, a cable for.

operating said actuating mechanism to open said cocks, and traction means between said auxiliary buoys and said hooks to separate said hooks and thereby said grab arms upon the ascent of said auxiliary buoys.

13. Apparatus for raising sunken objects comprising a buoy, a closed reservoir therein adapted to be charged with a pressure medium, a grab gear loosely mounted from said buoy, a discharge valve on said reservoir controlled by said grab gear, and vertical fins on the circumference of said buoy to prevent it from turning in the water.

In testimony whereof I have signed my name to this specification in the presence of two subscribing witnesses.

ADOLF VON REIOHELT.

Witnesses: l

Josnr RUBASOH, AUGUST FUGGER.

Copies of this patent may be obtained for five cents each, by addressing the Commissioner of Patents,

Washington, D. G. 

